Like many other politicians at various levels, Brian Panasiuk says he has never seen a pandemic like the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Mayor of High Prairie says this is a unique challenge that the world is facing.
“We have a couple of cases of positive test in our community early and I think people started taking it seriously when they heard that,” says Panasiuk.
When it comes to town operations Panasiuk says High Prairie is following the rules established by Alberta Health Services.
“The pool is closed down, our offices are closed to the public but we are still open for business,” explains Panasiuk, who says staff are available by phone or e-mail.
At a recent council meet, the town decided to offer residents and businesses the opportunity to defer utility payments and penalties for 90 days as of today.
A statement on High Prairie’s website says any accounts in arrears before April 1 are still subject to those penalties.
The program expires on June 30, 2020.
“If you don’t pay your fees, then we will not disconnect any of those services during that time period,” states Panasiuk.
– Kenny Trenton, Trending 55 Newsroom
